Twelve
by Holding A Star
Summary: Hermione Granger is eleven, going on twelve, when a strange man appears in her front yard in a magical blue box.
1. Chapter 1

**Twelve**

Disclaimer: I don't own Harry Potter or Doctor Who!

**I.**

It was a warm summer's day in England, and the weather was perfect for playing outside. Children were soaking up the sunlight while they could, enjoying their freedom before the new school year began, the thought of homework far from their minds. A group of boys rode their bicycles down a paved road, passing by an ordinary two-story house. Looking out of the second story window was a young Hermione Granger.

She stood in front of the window thinking about what her mum had told her before she left for work early that morning. She had said "You know you're allowed to go outside for a break, sweetheart," to which Hermione replied with a brisk "I know, mum," her eyes glued to _Hogwarts: A History_.

That conversation happened three hours ago. At the time, Hermione hadn't paid any attention, too absorbed in the fascinating history to acknowledge her mother's words. But soon her eyes grew weary from the strain of reading. Ever since she returned from Diagon Alley with the kind Professor, all Hermione did was study the tomes. Last night she spent countless hours underneath the sheets, a flashlight in one hand and her wand in the other, practicing first year charms and curses.

Now, her eyes fatigued, she contemplated going out into the front yard and spending time in the garden. Hermione didn't remember the last time she really looked at the plants and flowers her parents worked so hard to nurture. She nodded to herself. "Yes, I will take a break from my studies."

Hermione changed out of her pajamas and into a pink shirt and short denim overalls. She put on her old trainers, not wanting to dirty the new pair she bought for school. Sitting on the end of her bed she spotted her wand on her desk. Not thinking twice, she placed it in her front pocket.

Bounding down the stairs, she thought about the kids who were playing outside. Last year when her parents insisted she attempt to talk with her neighbors, she ended up hiding in the bushes in tears. An hour later she begged her parents to do something to fix her "beaver teeth".

That was the last time Hermione bothered to socialize with the group.

When Hermione stepped outside it was no longer sunny. Grey clouds filled the sky and blocked the sun. She deflated at the sight. Taking a look around she realized that the kids who were playing outside not too long ago were gone. It was almost as if they knew Hermione was on her way and left in case she wanted to join. She wasn't surprised. Kids at school were like that, too. A small sigh almost escaped her lips, but she caught it in time and mentally scolded herself.

No, she thought. I won't feel bad because a bunch of rude children don't want to play with me.

With that thought, she entered the garden. In the flower bed were new flowers she hadn't seen before amongst the pansies and forget-me-nots. A plant with purple bell shaped blossoms was planted in fresh soil. For some reason it seemed slightly out of place with the other flowers. "It's different from the others. The shape isn't the same," Hermione thought aloud. She reached out to touch the blossom when she heard a strange wheezing and groaning noise behind her.

Turning around, Hermione's eyes widened. A large blue box faded into existence. It became more visible with every wheeze and groan. She took several swift steps back with a gasp, unintentionally crushing some of the pansies. Then, the noise stopped. On the grass in front of her sat a blue police box that looked somewhat like a telephone booth.

Hermione looked around at the neighboring houses, wondering why no one else had come out to see what was causing such a racket. She knew her neighbors were nosey, so why weren't they out investigating? Hesitantly, Hermione stepped toward the box. Her heart was pounding. Half of her mind was screaming to go back inside and call 999, but the other half was curious. Was it magic? Was there a witch or wizard inside it?

Her slightly shaking hand touched the police box.

"It's… real."

The doors burst open. Hermione shrieked and jumped backward. An older man in a sharp suit poked half of his body through the box, making Hermione gasp loudly. The man frowned as he scanned the area around him, as if it wasn't what he was expecting.

"This isn't the Grand Canyon." His eyebrows furrowed.

As the Scotsman stepped out of the box, Hermione caught a glimpse of the inside. Her eyes widened dramatically. "That's impossible," she breathed. She took a tentative step forward, wanting to get a closer look…

"Well, I wouldn't say that."

She spun around. He was watching her curiously with stormy grey eyes that frightened her a bit with their intensity.

Hermione gathered her wits before pointing at the blue box. "I was talking about your box. It's bigger on the inside and that's impossible!" She spoke in a tone of absolute certainty. It was something her mother taught her. If you don't sound confident, no one will listen to you.

"Is it?" he leaned forward, peering into the box, bushy eyebrows slightly raised.

He was humouring her. Hermione bristled in annoyance. Why was he humouring her? "Of course it is!"

"Not understanding something doesn't make it impossible, my dear."

He stepped back and clasped his hands behind his back. "And it's not a box. Now tell me," he said before she could speak, "where exactly have I landed?"

The sudden change in topic threw Hermione off. What on Earth was he going on about? She blinked a few times.

"England."

"Hmm," he bounced on the balls of his feet, looking around the garden. "Interesting… I haven't a clue why she'd bring me here."

Hermione ignored his reference to the nonexistent 'she' and the way he stared at the grass under his feet while jumping in place.

She stared at him for a moment before bluntly asking "Are you a wizard?"

"Wizard?" He stopped what he was doing and looked at her. "Oh no, no, no, I'm no wizard, my dear."

This made Hermione frown.

"But, surely that was magic?" her face fell in disappointment.

"No, no magic here I'm afraid."

The man took a strange device out of his coat pocket and pointed it at the ground below him. It made a strange sound and to Hermione it looked a little like a metallic wand. Could wands be made of metal, she wondered.

"I'm sorry but I don't understand. If you aren't a wizard, then how did you make your box just appear? And what are you doing?!" She shrieked at the end at the sight of him crouching and digging a hole with the spade he stole from her parents' garden.

"Firstly, she's not a box. She's a Tardis." He continued digging, oblivious to the scandalized look Hermione had on her face. "She's a ship that travels through space and time. It's not magic, merely very advanced technology."

"Sir, if you could-" Hermione began anxiously.

"Please," he interrupted. "Please don't call me Sir." The man looked imploringly at her before continuing to remove dirt from the ground and onto the growing pile beside him.

"Well, what am I to call you? I don't know your name." She crossed her arms.

"I'm the Doctor," he took out his device and it made the strange noise again. "And there seems to be something out of place underneath your front lawn."

As the Doctor continued digging with her mum's hand-spade, Hermione narrowed her eyes at the man, examining him. The entire situation was making her head ache terribly. None of what this man (Doctor?) was saying made any sense to her, and that was saying something. If it weren't for the fact that she had seen the box materialize, she would have thought him a complete madman. But the more she thought about it, the more plausible it seemed. After all, if it could travel through _time…_Hermione was so lost in her thoughts, she didn't realize that the Doctor had stopped digging until she heard him clear his throat.

"Are you all right, dear?" he asked.

"Hermione," she mumbled.

"I beg your pardon?"

"My name," she said, "is Hermione. Hermione Granger." She stuck out her hand.

The corner of his mouth quirked faintly and he took her hand to shake it. She felt surprised by how gently he held her hand, an action that contrasted greatly with his old gruff exterior.

"Hermione Granger, you have a firm grip for such a wee young thing." The Doctor remarked before going back to digging.

With an inaudible sigh, Hermione decided it was pointless to try and convince him to stop destroying her front lawn. Besides, her curiosity had surpassed any other emotion she was feeling at the moment. Something about the Doctor intrigued her. He was a mysterious character, like something out of one of her fiction books. She crouched down beside him, gripping the grass to keep her steady, and watched him dig.

What at first was a round hole was now squarer in shape, although it was still shallow. Hermione estimated it to be no more than a width of four fingers deep.

"Wouldn't it be easier to use a shovel instead?" she asked.

He shook his head, eyes focused on the earth. "It's not much deeper. In fact, I should almost…be…there…"

The Doctor continued to drive the small spade into the earth. It took another full minute until he hit something with a clang.

"Aha!" he exclaimed, tossing the spade over his shoulder. Hermione grimaced as it disappeared into the bushes.

"What is it?" She watched as he began moving dirt with his bare hands, revealing a metal handle. Hermione's jaw dropped. The Doctor's lips twitched upward as he pointed his device at it.

"According to the sonic, it's…" he brought it toward his eyes, "iron."

"Sonic…?"

"Sonic screwdriver; it's very useful for many things, such as unlocking locked doors." The Doctor pointed his sonic screwdriver at the iron door and it made that odd sound that reminded Hermione of science fiction films. He stood up with a grunt and Hermione followed suit. She watched in awe as the Doctor walked over to his Tardis and closed the doors by merely snapping his fingers.

Seeing the look on her face, the Doctor said, "Don't go thinking I'm a wizard now, Hermione. Magic isn't the only explanation for the unexplainable."

She nodded. It made sense. He did what she mentally referred to as 'the half-smile thing' and walked back to the iron trap door in the ground.

"Now," he clapped his hands together. "According to my sonic screwdriver, there seems to be an object that doesn't belong beneath this entrance. There's no sign of life as far as the scans have shown, so it should be relatively safe to explore." His gaze landed on her, "Would you like to find out what's underneath your front yard?"

For a moment, Hermione considered declining. She unconsciously started biting on her lip as she analyzed the situation. It seemed ridiculous, if she was honest with herself. An eccentric man appearing out of nowhere in a box that was bigger on the inside, finding a trap door under her lawn which lead to who-knows-where, and he was asking if she wanted to go with him? A man she didn't even know? How could she even consider going with him, a man who called himself a Doctor?

He watched her not impatiently with those stormy eyes. They were old eyes that looked like they'd seen much more than he possibly could have at his age. That was something else that held her rooted to the spot. Although he seemed like a harmless older man at first glance, putting aside the fact that he was a bit mad, she had the impression that there was more to him – something dangerous.

Although her logical mind was screaming that this was a very bad idea, there would be too many questions left unanswered if she didn't go with the Doctor. Hermione _needed_ to know what was beneath her feet, and she had to figure out exactly how he got here. And there was only one way of finding out.

"Yes," she said.

"Fantastic!" the Doctor grabbed the handle of the trap door and wrenched it open. There was a wooden staircase that led into darkness. Hermione briefly wondered if she made the wrong choice. But then the Doctor gave her a reassuring look and outstretched his hand.

She took it.

* * *

So there's the first chapter! I'm pretty new to the Doctor Who fandom and I couldn't resist writing a little story about the 12th Doctor (who I'm super excited for AH!) meeting a pre-Hogwarts Hermione Granger teehee! :) There will be two more chapters and maaaybe an epilogue if needed! I hope you will enjoy this short story!** -Holding A Star**


	2. Chapter 2

**II.**

Hermione firmly held the Doctor's hand as they made their way down the aging wooden stairs. He held his sonic screwdriver in the air, using it to light their way down the pitch black passageway. It was a challenge to keep up with the Doctor, who took long legged strides down the steps. They seemed to go down forever. Her heart was pounding loudly in her ribcage, and with how silent it was she wouldn't have been surprised if the Doctor could hear it. She couldn't help her nervousness - everything about the place was eerie, from the grimy brick walls on their left and right to the creaky wooden stairs. Every breath she took was shallow. For what seemed like the millionth time in the past hour, Hermione's brain was yelling at her to turn back and lock herself in her room.

No, she thought. I must be brave. I'll never be sorted into Gryffindor if I can't even handle exploring my own front yard!

"Gryffindor?" the Doctor broke the silence.

A blush made its way onto Hermione's face. She was thinking out loud again.

"Gryffindor is one of four houses in the school I will be attending next year. The other three are Ravenclaw, Hufflepuff and Slytherin. Each house values different traits. Ravenclaws value intelligence, Hufflepuffs loyalty and hard work, Slytherins ambition. Gryffindor values bravery and courage… I would very much like to be sorted into Gryffindor." Hermione said this all in one breath. She cautioned a glance at the Doctor, but his face gave no hints of what he was thinking.

"Hmm… what's the name of this school, you say?"

Hermione bit her lip. When the Professor came to her home and explained the wizarding world, she had mentioned that witches and wizards were not allowed to tell muggles about their world. There were even laws against it! She didn't want to break the law… but surely she already had by mentioning it to the Doctor earlier?

"Hogwarts." That was safe to say, wasn't it? She wondered.

His eyebrows rose faintly. "I cannae say I've ever heard of a school called Hogwarts in England." He turned his head to peer at her for a second before looking forward once again.

"You couldn't have heard of it, Doctor." The words spilled out of her mouth before she could stop it. Her free hand flew to her mouth. She had said too much. Now he was going to ask questions.

"Oh?"

The stairs ended abruptly and there was now dirt beneath their feet where there once was wood. There was barely enough room for the Doctor to display his full height. In a fluid movement, the Doctor let go of Hermione's hand and whirled around, examining the two passageways in front of them. The left-hand passage was impassable. From what Hermione could tell, it seemed to be blocked by a large rock or boulder from the other side.

"Why do you say that, dear?" He asked as he scanned the rock with his sonic screwdriver.

"Well," she faltered. "Because Hogwarts is hidden, Doctor. You see, it's a school of witchcraft and wizardry. Its existence is a secret from those who aren't witches or wizards."

"Ah, I see now." He said as he continued his examination of the area. "That explains why you insisted I was a wizard, and why I've never heard of this school of yours; which I'm absolutely positive does not exist on Earth. Well not my Earth, at least."

"What do you mean not your Earth?" Hermione stared at him in confusion.

But the answer to her question never came. His eyes flickered to the blocked tunnel. Then he frowned down at his sonic. Suddenly, the Doctor took her hand and pulled her into toward the open passageway, holding his sonic screwdriver in front of them like it was a torch.

Hermione frowned at how fast the Doctor was walking. For every step he took, she had to take nearly four. Hazarding a glance at the man, she could see how serious he appeared in the light of the sonic. The way his eyes flitted to and fro, and with his thin lips twisted into a grimace, she knew there was something wrong. Then she heard it. A loud rumbling filled the air from the area they left. Their pace quickened.

"Doctor, please!" Hermione said after stumbling. "Please slow down!"

"I'm afraid I cannae do that, lass." He glanced over his shoulder and scowled. "We're being followed."

"Followed?" she squeaked, turning her head to look behind her. Although it was pitch black, she swore she could hear another pair of feet walking after them. "I thought you said it was safe! That there were no signs of life!"

"I don't believe this," the Doctor grumbled, completely ignoring Hermione. "It's been three days and I still cannae get things right!" His voice rose in frustration.

Nothing the Doctor said made any sense to Hermione. She felt jittery with nerves and couldn't keep her hands from trembling slightly. Every time she looked over her shoulder she expected to see some creepy creature behind her, but it was always completely dark. But the thumping sound never ended.

It was while Hermione was glancing over her shoulder, checking for any sign of the beast following them, that she heard the Doctor exclaim "Damn!"

She opened her mouth to say 'What?' but immediately shut it when she saw the sight before them.

They reached a dead end.

The Doctor shone his sonic screwdriver at the brick wall in front of them. He released her hand and Hermione immediately felt a rush of anxiety at the loss of contact. She hadn't realized how much more safe the hand holding made her feel until that very moment.

His sonic screwdriver was scanning the red bricks. He checked the readings and frowned. The Doctor touched the wall with his fingertips, and Hermione cringed in disgust when he licked them.

"What on Earth are you doing?" she screeched.

"Tasting." He said, as if it was normal human behavior. Licking his lips he frowned thoughtfully before declaring, "That doesn't taste like brick, which means it's not a dead end!"

Hermione was beginning to wonder if the Doctor was indeed mad. She was about to point out that he couldn't possibly know that it wasn't a dead end by licking bricks when she heard it again. Thump. Thump. Thump. Slowly she turned around. She gasped.

"Doctor?" Hermione's voice wobbled. She backed into the solid wall, arm shaking as she pointed into the darkness. Her other hand found her wand and gripped it tightly.

A large figure loomed in the shadows, far enough away that they could only see its outline and the glistening of its eyes. It emitted a low growl that sent a chill up Hermione's spine. Her eyes flicked toward the Doctor, who was pointing his sonic screwdriver at the… thing.

With a thump that caused dirt to fall from the ceiling, the creature stepped into the light. What Hermione saw made the air fly out of her lungs. An extremely deformed human being stood in front of them. Its face was smudged with dirt and its features distorted, but clearly human. Dressed in rags, and so tall that it had to hunch in order to not touch the ceiling, it stared vacantly at the Doctor.

As the Doctor scanned the creature with his sonic, Hermione held her breath. Her body was pressed so hard against the wall she almost expected to disappear through it. She watched as the Doctor read the results of the scan.

"Human…and giant." She could hear the realization in his voice.

"I've seen something like this before." He murmured. "Not with giants, of course. She musta been banished by her people for being half human. Judging by the clothes, she's had a run-in with humans, and we can see how that encounter turned out." He laughed bitterly, shaking his head faintly.

"She's the one who blocked the other passage with that boulder, and based on the worn state of her clothes, she's been livin underground for a long time." The Doctor gave Hermione a reassuring look. "Don't worry, she's harmless."

Hermione assumed she must have looked terrified, because the Doctor grabbed her hand.

The movement didn't go unnoticed by the half-giantess. She grunted and stared at Hermione like she was just now seeing her, and it made Hermione anxious.

Before they knew what was happening, the half-giantess let out a blood-curdling noise. Hermione's skin erupted in goose-pimples as the giantess stretched her arms toward her and charged.

"Doctor!" Hermione screamed as the giantess took a swipe at her, only to graze the brick wall.

Time seemed to slow down. Her arms were above her head shielding herself, but she didn't remember when she let go of the Doctor's hand. One hand was gripping her wand so tightly, she feared she would snap it in half. The giantess had her cornered. At some point she had fallen face first onto the ground. Her heart was racing, adrenaline the only thing keeping her alive as she dodged the blows aimed at her.

The passage shook and the giantess roared in pain. Hermione looked up to see the half-giant's massive arm stuck in the ground only an inch away from her body. She immediately scrambled away and to the Doctor who, to her complete annoyance, was patting his hands against the brick wall.

"ARE YOU COMPLETELY MAD?" Hermione screeched, and in her fury she slapped his shoulder as hard as she could.

Before she could continue her assault, the Doctor grabbed her hand – specifically the one holding her wand. There was a gleam in his eyes as he wrestled it out of her grip. Hermione was affronted at the unabashed rudeness and opened her mouth to speak up about it, but the giantess cried again, reminding Hermione of her priorities: deal with the half-giant first, scold the Doctor later.

With a mighty roar, the giantess wrenched her arm from the ground. The strength she used to free herself sent the giantess falling backward onto her backside, making the entire passage quake.

Meanwhile, the Doctor had scanned Hermione's wand and was staring at her in delight.

"Magic, of course! That's why the half-giantess felt threatened by you and attacked." He thrust the wand back into her hand. She looked at him in confusion.

"Hermione, listen to me." He crouched down to meet her eyes and covered her hand with both of his. "I want you to paralyze her. She's out of control and I cannae do anything to stop her with my sonic. Paralyze her, but do NOT harm her."

"But Doc-"

"No buts!" he stood up and turned back to the wall.

Hermione turned to face the now standing half-giantess, who was growling at her menacingly. Her mind went blank. All of the emotions swirling through her chest overwhelmed her, and she couldn't stop her eyes from filling with tears.

Her entire arm trembled as she pointed it at the being. She struggled to remember the spell she read about only two days ago. The giantess bared her teeth and then charged with a roar.

Then it came to her.

"PETRIFICUS TOTALUS!" she shouted with a wave of her wand.

Immediately, the half-giant's arms and legs snapped together and she fell to the ground with an earth-shaking thud. Hermione looked down at her in shock.

"That was fantastic, Hermione!" She swerved her head to stare at the Doctor. He was looking over his shoulder at the giantess, seemingly impressed. "You didn't hurt her, right?"

She shook her head vigorously. "_Curses and Counter-Curses_ states that the Full Body Binding Curse doesn't cause pain to the victim of the curse. It will wear off within an hour or so."

He nodded to himself, looking pleased with her answer before turning back to face the dead end.

"Doctor, what is so special about this wall?" she sighed, placing her wand back in her front pocket.

"It's not a wall," he said, and he tapped it with his fingertips as if to try and prove his point. "It's a door that's programmed to look and feel like a brick wall. If you look closely you can see the image flicker every few seconds." He gave her a smug look. "I told you it wasn't a dead end."

Hermione narrowed her eyes at the brick wall, her eyes crossing a bit as she focused intently on the supposed door. Her eyes watered slightly as she refused to blink. For a split second the wall turned a dull grey color before becoming a brick wall again. He was right.

"How do we open it?"

"I've already tried unlocking it with the sonic, but its having problems on this Earth."

Again with 'this Earth', she thought to herself.

The Doctor stared at the door thoughtfully before looking at her. "Do you know any spells to unlock locks?"

"As a matter of fact, I do." she said and took her wand out of her pocket.

"Great," the Doctor said, doing the 'half-smile thing' as Hermione called it.

This spell she had practiced at home several times. Her parents hadn't appreciated her going around locking and unlocking doors.

With a wave of her wand, Hermione said "Alohamora." There was a clink as the door unlocked. The once brick pattern disappeared to be replaced with a dull metal door, opened slightly ajar.

"Hermione Granger," she turned to look at him as he spoke. "You are simply marvelous! Now let's find out what's behind this door, shall we?"

* * *

That's the end of the second chapter, only one more to go! And WOW I definitely wasn't expecting so many follows on this story, wow! Thanks to Emaelin, Franavu, GoldenKeeper2567, Kymothy, Zarbi, cosmoGirl666, denise3, floatsodelicately, hellotheremynameisnicole, notwritten, Minthe Faye, WhenTheWorldEnded, Graphite-Ash, justthelittlethings, , Ashies, Liveera, Readerforlife, and phonenixyfriend for following! I'll try and finish editing the final chapter as soon as possible! I hope you all have a great month!**-Holding A Star**


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